Passive or active electronic components may include ferro- or ferrimagnetic thin-film elements which perform an important function for the components. To ensure the functioning of such a ferro- or ferrimagnetic element, it is often beneficial to provide a specific, defined magnetic domain structure. The domain structure formed in thin films by spontaneous magnetization depends first and foremost on minimization of the stray field. For that reason, it is often not possible to control the domain structure, particularly when the material properties are not constant across the film.
On the other hand, the ability to control the domain structure, and to spatially and temporally stabilize the same constitute fundamental preconditions of magnetoelectronic or spintronic components, particularly in the area of high-frequency technology, sensor technology, storage media and electronics.
European Patent Application EP 1 168 383 A1 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,529,110 B2 describe the division of microstructures into individual sections. To this end, an elongated, magnetic thin-film core located inside of a solenoid is divided into a plurality of square or rectangular sections, the thin-film core being divided perpendicularly to the solenoid axis. With this arrangement a completely separated structural configuration leads to relatively unstable domain structures whose formation is dependent on the external geometry and is not directly controllable.
Thus, an aspect of the present invention is to provide a ferro- or ferrimagnetic film, and a method for the preparation and use thereof, that will overcome the aforementioned. It is an aspect, in particular, to provide a ferro- or ferrimagnetic film in which the domain structure is substantially controllable.